Famous Blue Raincoat

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In a 1994 BBC Radio Interview, Cohen remarked: "The problem with that song is that I've forgotten the actual triangle. Whether it was my own - of course, I always felt that there was an invisible male seducing the woman I was with, now whether this one was incarnate or merely imaginary I don't remember, I've always had the sense that either I've been that figure in relation to another couple or there'd been a figure like that in relation to my marriage. I don't quite remember but I did have this feeling that there was always a third party, sometimes me, sometimes another man, sometimes another woman. It was a song I've never been satisfied with. It's not that I've resisted an impressionistic approach to songwriting, but I've never felt that this one, that I really nailed the lyric. I'm ready to concede something to the mystery, but secretly I've always felt that there was something about the song that was unclear. So I've been very happy with some of the imagery, but a lot of the imagery." Canadian album certifications – Jennifer Warnes – Famous Blue Raincoat". Music Canada . Retrieved August 19, 2022. In the liner notes to 1975's The Best of Leonard Cohen, which includes the song, he mentions that the famous blue raincoat to which he refers actually belonged to him, and not someone else:

Assistant engineers– Jeff Park, Nyya Lark, Terry Dunavan, Ken Fowler, Dan Reed, Sharon Rice, Garth Richardson, Duane Seykora, Russ Bracher, Joel Stoner Joanie from Bowling Green, KyWhat a line: "You treated my woman to a flake of your life, and when she came home, she was nobody's wife". A great writer who wears it well. In 1994 Cohen said that "it was a song I've never been satisfied with". [1] In the 1999 book, The Complete Guide to the Music of Leonard Cohen, the authors comment that Cohen's question, "Did you ever go clear?", in the song, is a reference to the Scientology state of " Clear". [3]

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Ms. JENNIFER WARNES (Singer): (Singing) It's four in the morning, the end of December, I'm writing you now just to see if you're better... Famous Blue Raincoat" has also been recorded by numerous other artists, including Tori Amos, Joan Baez, Jonathan Coulton, Nathaniel Rateliff, and Eivør and Jared Louche. [8] [9] It provided the title to Jennifer Warnes' album of cover versions of Cohen's songs.

The supercharged opener here, "First We Take Manhattan", with stinging Stevie Ray Vaughan guitar lines, is from the then unreleased I'm Your Man album as was "There Ain't No Cure For Love". In reviewing the reissue, Steve Horowitz of PopMatters noted, "This anniversary edition... may finally give the album the acclaim it initially deserved." [5] Peter Gerstenzanga of The Village Voice wrote after the reissue, Damien Rice performed the song at the 2017 Tower of Song: A Memorial Tribute to Leonard Cohen concert. [10] First Aid Kit included it in their Who By Fire memorial tribute [11] sung by Maja Francis. [12] "When I Need You" comparison [ edit ] Taylor, Tom (November 7, 2021). "Leonard Cohen's 10 greatest songs of all time". Far Out . Retrieved April 27, 2023.Something old is something new in the music world. Here with a review, musician and DAY TO DAY contributor David Was.

Adams, James (11 February 2006). "Legal battles? Cohen's Zen with that". The Globe and Mail. Archived from the original on 18 January 2008 . Retrieved 8 April 2020. WAS: Jennifer Warnes' take on Leonard Cohen's music is anything but dismal. In fact, it's sometimes jarring to hear his songs given the high-gloss Los Angeles production treatment. Cohen said in a 1993 issue of Song Talk: "I thought that Jennifer Warnes' version in a sense was better because I worked on a different version for her, and I thought it was somewhat more coherent. But I always thought that that was a song you could see the carpentry in a bit. Although there are some images in it that I am very pleased with. And the tune is real good. But I'm willing to defend it, saying it was impressionistic. It's stylistically coherent. And I can defend it if I have to. But secretly I always felt that there was a certain incoherence that prevented it from being a great song." However, while I originally found it difficult to completely warm up to Warnes' performance perfection and her inherent "chipperness", I'm far more appreciative of it now as I am of the arrangements and the overall production. I found Warnes take on "Song of Bernadette", particularly moving. The problem is that her technical chops are so formidable, she makes the truly difficult sound easy.WAS: In the early '70s, Jennifer Warnes was one of his ever-present chorus of angels. Leonard's own vocals are earthy and expressive and emitted in a low frequency grumble that begs for upper register decoration. My voice sounds so much better when a woman is singing with me, Cohen said; some dismal quality is neutralized. The lyrics contain references to the German love song " Lili Marlene," to Scientology, and to Clinton Street. Cohen lived on Clinton Street in Manhattan in the 1970s when it was a lively Latino area. [2] WAS: Brooding songs like Cohen's "Bird on a Wire" sound positively uplifting reframed in this manner and the recording itself is long been prized as an audiophile's dream demo disk. Today, heard as a fascinating "historical artifact" of a bygone production era, the glossy arrangements and once sounding almost inappropriately ornate renderings of earthy Leonard Cohen songs, now present themselves as less jarring and somehow more pleasing.

Scott from Los Angeles, CaTori Amos does a version of this song as a b-side at least one of her singles, and she performs it in concert regularly. Guest contributors include guitarists Stevie Ray Vaughan, David Lindley and Robben Ford, drummer Vinnie Colaiuta, keyboardist Russell Ferrante, arranger Van Dyke Parks and Cohen himself duetting on " Joan of Arc". Geri from Nova Scotia, CanadaReally, when you listen to the lyrics (or rather poems)of his songs, there is the obvious sexual tension to the words but more so than that his intelligence and philosophy touches you on a much deeper level than the fact that his appeal to women is incredibly irresistible. A firend of mine remembers him from his early days in Montreal and recalls his almost hypnotic charm on the female of the species, he had woman following him everywhere. Originally released in 1987 on Cypress and later reissued by Private Music and then Classic Records, this IMPEX reissue is the album's fourth and best-sounding version. Dan from Sydney, AustraliaI agree with Joanie about the "flake of your life" line. Absolutely brilliant and the devastation of it is literally soul crushing. The fact that a mere "flake" of the other man was enough to make Cohen's woman happier than he could ever hope to make her himself. Just put yourself in those shoes with a relationship you may be in and consider how it would feel...The Complex, Amigo Studios, Hollywood Sound, The Enterprise, Mama Jo's, Salty Dog Recording, The Record Plant Cohen's version is sung from the perspective of a man discussing with another man a woman they both had a relationship with. Many female artists have managed to flip the gender and make the song even more ambiguous. Joan Baez, Tori Amos, Laurie MacAllister and Jennifer Warnes are some of the artists who have covered this song. In 1987, Warnes released an entire album of Cohen's songs called Famous Blue Raincoat before contributing to the hit " (I've Had) The Time of My Life" later that year.